A wonderful trip, John, and great news that your Plus Four was a loyal companion rather than a killjoy. We enjoy a trip to Luxembourg from time to time, it's not that far from Cologne. Regarding potholes, come to North Rhine-Westphalia, we now have in some regions as many potholes as we do unpunctual trains. In Belgium, potholes may have some charm, but in Germany they are an unmistakable symptom of the state of the entire country.
Living not far from you just at the border (50 meters!) near the Selfkant, I experience the German roads as relatively good, compared to other countries. I must say, our own country isn't that bad! What becomes more and more a problem in Germany are speed limits and works due to bridges which lacked maintainance for a long time! But we see this on a smaller scale in The Netherlands too! Our only high speed train is not allowed to go faster than 60 km/h at some places due to unstable viaducts!
